One more day, one more process and, as has been the technique of Apple's recent judicial imbroglios, one more specifically related to Apple's alleged monopolistic practices with the App store.
The most recent case, reported by the Yahoo Finance, involves a class action against Apple filed by a couple of developers at the Northern California District Court. The complainants' reasoning is similar to what we have seen before: according to the complaint, Apple and App Store policies prevent the creation of a competitive environment, reducing the profit potential of developers.
More specifically, the authors of the process cite some elements that they say are abusive and harmful to developers. These include Ma's $ 100 annual fee for developers to sign up for Apple Developer to distribute their apps on the App Store, as well as the 30% fee charged by Apple for store sales and the fact that All apps sold there should have a price ending with the decimal 0.99, which reduces the possibility of different (and more attractive) prices.
According to the developers, Apple's alleged security justification for keeping the App Store as the only form of app distribution on iOS is "overstated." The authors argue that the Cupertino giant could allow the stores of other major companies, such as Amazon, to operate to the satisfaction of their devices while favoring a more competitive environment.
The law firm representing the developers is not Hagens Berman, who has already opposed Apple in other court cases. The lawyers have beaten Ma in court earlier, by the way: it was in that polemic of price manipulation in iBooks (now renamed to Books, or Books). Lawyer Steve Berman, one of the firm's partners, stated:
This is not the first time we have challenged Apple's anti-competitive practices. We have successfully faced the company in the past and made it follow the law; Now, we once again intend to fight for the rights of iOS developers, who take their hard work and creativity App Store with the fair hope of monetizing their creations.
Apple did not comment on the case, but we will be aware of possible developments in this story.
via MacRumors
